Éirinn go brách! Celebrating at Home...Again.

For those wondering what happened to me, I'm still here. Work has been extremely busy, and that's a good thing.

Some quick Hobby Notes:

I have completed my 2016 Topps Master set. With all of the Heritage hub bub lately, I take comfort knowing that the Gypsy Queen (the 2016 edition anyway) will set sail soon.

There is a big card show this weekend down the street from my house. Do I plan on buying stuff? Maybe. I'm hoping to get a lot of free stuff. But more importantly, I'm there to feel the environment. I love these big card shows. I love watching the people. I might not go for the autographs, but to see fathers (and mothers) with their sons (and daughters) sharing the Hobby we all love, makes me appreciate all that is good about it.

But I digress.

Today is St. Patrick's Day. It is the day that honors St. Patrick, who is the patron saint of Ireland. It also commemorates the arrival of Christianity to the Emerald Isle. In fact, it is said (thanks Wikipedia) that he used shamrocks to explain the Holy Trinity.

My family will be enjoying boiled corned beef brisket with all the veggies (potatoes, carrots, cabbage) tonight. I would like to apologize to my sister...AGAIN...because we will not be able to join her and the rest of the family for dinner (it's a school night, there are still dance classes happening). Meanwhile, I've been playing Irish music on the computer all afternoon, just to get into the mood.


If anybody says, "Top of the morning to you," to you today, make sure to respond in kind, "And the rest of the day to yourself."

Public Service Announcement (as my wife just said that she found the Bailey's): As you celebrate St. Patrick's Day, please remember to celebrate responsibly.



Now for the baseball portion of the program. If you're wondering, while there are many baseball players of Irish descent, 47 native-born Irish men made at least one appearance in the majors.
The last native born Irish player was Joe Cleary. Born in County Cork, Cleary only appeared in one game (08/04/1945) in 0.1 inning of work for the Washington Senators. But in that eventful inning, he struck out one batter (the good news), but allowed five hits, three walks, and seven earned runs to score. Saving time for the math, but seven runs in 1/3 innings equals an ERA of 189.

So now, a quick toast to everyone, Irish or just-for-the-day:

May the road rise up to meet you. May the wind be at your back.
May your cards collections grow to unmeasurable heights in both volume and value.
May the quest for new cards be swift.
May the journey of life treat you well today and always.
And may a certain North Side baseball team win it all this year (just have a decent season...please).
If you catch my drift.

Sláinte!

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama